Bill Murray, Punxsutawney Phil, and the Jeep Gladiator pickup truck took the top billings in Jeep’s Groundhog Day-inspired Super Bowl LIV commercial, but there was still plenty of room in the 60-second spot for some solid supporting roles from Stephen Tobolowsky, Brian Doyle-Murray, and … the Jeep E-Bike? Yes, right at the ad’s 38-second mark, Jeep’s electrically assisted bicycle makes an appearance sporting a front basket (for Punxsutawney Phil, the groundhog, who even has a little helmet!).
Jeep didn’t create the E-Bike simply for its Super Bowl ad, though, and the brand announced it will begin selling the electrically assisted mountain bike in June. The E-Bike is essentially a Jeep-branded version of Colorado-based QuietKat’s Fat Tire RidgeRunner mountain bike, a spokesperson for QuietKat told MotorTrend. As such, it is identically equipped with a 1,000-watt (roughly 1.3-hp) electric motor, which can push the 65-pound Fat Tire to an unassisted 28-mph top speed. Let the motor do all the work (meaning you don’t pedal at all), and the Fat Tire RidgeRunner (and presumably the E-Bike) will go approximately 25 miles before it drains its battery completely. QuietKat claims that, by pedaling, a user can see a total range of up to 50 miles. Once the battery taps out, all momentum is relegated to the user-operated pedals. Fortunately, the bike’s nine gears ought to make moving by pedal power alone a relatively low-lift affair.
Pricing for the Jeep E-Bike remains under wraps. However, if the $6,575 Fat Tire RidgeRunner is anything to go by, then we expect the E-Bike to come close to, if not break, the $7,000 mark. Hey, that Jeep branding surely ain’t free, right? Bill Murray and Punxsutawney Phil not included.